Metepenagiag Miꞌkmaq Nation Explained

Official Name:Metepenagiag Mi'kmaq Nation
Pushpin Map:New Brunswick
Pushpin Mapsize:200
Pushpin Label Position:left
Pushpin Map Caption:Location of Metepenagiag in New Brunswick
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:Canada
Subdivision Type1:Province
Subdivision Name1:New Brunswick
Subdivision Type2:County
Subdivision Name2:Northumberland County
Leader Title:Chief
Leader Title1:Council
Leader Title2:MP
Leader Title3:MLAs
Leader Name:Bill Ward
Leader Name1:Laurie Augustine
Roman Ward
Lawrence Ward
Kevin Levi
Adam AugustineDiana Webb
Leader Name3:Jake Stewart (PC)
Robert Trevors (PC)
Established Title:Established
Established Date:1783
Area Total Km2:39.07
Population As Of:2006
Population Total:551
Population Footnotes:[1] [2]
Area Code:506 / 428
Utc Offset:-4
Timezone Dst:ADT
Utc Offset Dst:-3
Coordinates:46.9333°N -65.8167°W
Elevation Min M:0
Blank Name:NTS Map
Blank Info:021I13
Website:http://www.metepenagiag.ca/
Footnotes:Postal code span:

Metepenagiag (pronounced MET-EHH-PE-NAH-GHEE-AH), also known as Red Bank is a Mi'kmaq First Nation band government in New Brunswick, Canada on the other side of the Miramichi river from Sunny Corner.

Pre-history

Metepenagiag Mi'kmaq Nation are located at the head of tide of the Miramichi River. For thousands of years Mi’kmaq communities along New Brunswick’s northeastern shore lived near tidal estuaries where tidal saltwater flows inland and creates an ecosystem for "anadromous fish species such as salmon, sturgeon, gaspereau or alewife, striped bass, and eel, that seasonally move up the estuaries in large numbers." Some of these species spawned above the ‘head of tide’ and up the freshwater streams.[3]

Although officially recognised in 1783, Metepenagiag has been home to a Mi'kmaq community for over 3000 years,[4] making it the oldest continuously settled community in New Brunswick.

Augustine Mound

Evidence for the age of the community was revealed in 1972 by Joseph Mike Augustine. After reading a 1972 National Geographic article about an ancient burial mound in Arizona, Augustine recalled the mound where his father had taken him near his home.[5] The mound was on the caribou hunting trail that he and his father used regularly and they stopped to rest there.

The artifacts found at the site (the Augustine Mound), and a second nearby site (the Oxbow site) demonstrated that Metepenagiag had been continuously inhabited for over 3000 years,[4] and that the community enjoyed trading relationships with other First Nations communities, stretching as far west as the Ohio River Valley.

There has been some disagreement among residents concerning naming this important cultural and spiritual site, The Augustine Mound. While it was Joe Mike Augustine who first brought attention to the ancient burial site, most residents were aware of its existence. The name also falsely suggests that it is only the resting place of members of the Augustine family. While this is likely true, the mound was likely a community burial site, meaning that many of the oldest families of Metepenagiag have ancestors interred therein. Some feel the much more inclusive "Metepenagiag Mound" would better describe and honor those whose remains lie beneath the mound.[4]

In 1975 the Augustine Mound was designated as a National Historic Site of Canada. The Augustine Mound has similarities to the elaborate burial rites of the Adena culture of the Ohio Valley and contained materials that were not local including copper from Lake Superior area. Turnbull argues that the Red Bank people were part of a broad Northeastern pre-contact trade network. He also suggested that some Maritime people adopted aspects of the Adena culture and religion.[6] Keenlyside claims that Adena culture peoples moved to Atlantic Canada.[7] Ceramic fragments also found at Red Bank are illustrative of the ceramic technology in use by Maritime First Nations 2,500 to 3,000 years ago.

Oxbow

In 1982, the nearby Oxbow archaeological site, located within the reserve land of the Metepenagiag Mi’kmaq Nation on an oxbow bend of the Southwest Miramichi River,[8] was also designated a National Historic Site of Canada for its role as "witness and record of 3000 years of continuous Mi’kmaq use of the site". Over 100 additional archaeological sites have been discovered in the area since 1975. Metepenagiaq First Nations now has their Metepenagiag Heritage Park.[4] [9] [10]

History

See also: History of New Brunswick and List of historic places in Northumberland County, New Brunswick. Although the Red Bank Band lands established by the New Brunswick Order-in-Council in 1808 comprised 10,000 acres, settlers and squatters occupied almost all of allocated land by the late 1830s. Only the village at Red Bank and the back wood lots were left for the Band. Under the Specific Claims Policy (2005), it was found that the 1895 alleged surrender of land was invalid and the Metepenagiag Mi'kmaq Nation negotiated for more land.

Notable people

See main article: List of people from Northumberland County, New Brunswick.

See also

Further reading

References

  1. Web site: Backgrounder - Metepenagiag Mi'kmaq Nation. Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada. AANDC. 30 August 2013. 15 September 2010.
  2. Web site: 2006 Aboriginal Population Profile: Metepenagiag Mi'kmaq Nation. Indian and Northern Affairs. 30 August 2013. 15 January 2008 .
  3. Book: Leavitt, R. M.. 1995. Maliseet & Micmac: First Nations of the Maritimes. Tribune Printing. Sackville, New Brunswick.
  4. Allen, Patricia Marlene. Metepenagiag: New Brunswick's Oldest Village. Fredericton and Red Bank. Goose Lane Editions and Red Bank First Nation. 1994. 2007-09-17. https://web.archive.org/web/20080103235329/http://metepenagiagpark.com/. 2008-01-03. dead.
  5. Web site: Joe Augustine - Footprints. Cheryl Petten. 1995. AMMSA. 30 August 2013.
  6. Turnbull, C. J.. 1976. The Augustine Site: a Mound from the Maritimes. Archaeology of Eastern North America. 4. 50–62.
  7. Web site: Burial Mounds and Trade Networks. Canadian Museum of Civilization. Gatineau, Quebec. David Keenlyside. 30 August 2013. Glimpses of Atlantic Canada’s Past. 1999. originally published in Revista de Arqueología Americana, no. 16, 1999.
  8. Web site: Oxbow National Historic Site of Canada, Red Bank Indian Reserve. 30 August 2013. Parks Canada. PC.
  9. Web site: Metepenagiag Heritage Park. August 8, 2008. Metepenagiag Mi'kmaq Nation. https://web.archive.org/web/20080704064135/http://www.metepenagiagpark.com/. July 4, 2008. dead.
  10. Web site: Metepenagiag Website. August 8, 2008. Metepenagiag Mi'kmaq Nation. https://web.archive.org/web/20080705202930/http://www.metepenagiag.com/. July 5, 2008. dead.

External links